Trai spam proposal draws objections from Airtel, Jio, Vi
- India's telecom regulator Trai proposed new spam rules for call-management apps including Truecaller.
- The proposal would stop apps from tagging or blocking calls from commercial 140 and 160-series numbers as spam.
- Trai also proposed requiring apps to share user-generated spam reports with its Do-not-disturb registry, prompting objections from Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio, and Vodafone Idea.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) proposed spam-control rules for call-management apps such as Truecaller in April 2025, and the proposal has drawn objections from Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio, and Vodafone Idea. The draft would prohibit these apps from tagging or blocking incoming calls from commercial 140 and 160-series numbers as spam and would require them to share user-generated spam reports with Trai's Do-not-disturb (DND) registry.
The proposal focuses on third-party call-management apps that identify, tag, or block incoming calls. Under the draft, apps such as Truecaller would have to treat 140 and 160-series numbers differently from other calls, even when users report them as spam, and would also need to pass user-generated complaint data to Trai's DND system.
The dispute reflects a broader policy debate in India over how spam controls should apply across telecom operators and over-the-top (OTT) apps. Trai's proposal targets app-based call filtering rather than only carrier networks, bringing platforms such as Truecaller into the same anti-spam policy discussion as operators including Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio, and Vodafone Idea.
Related Questions
- Does Truecaller have to stop blocking 140 and 160-series numbers in India?
- Not yet. Trai has proposed rules that would prohibit call-management apps such as Truecaller from tagging or blocking commercial 140 and 160-series numbers as spam, but the article describes a proposal, not a final rule.
- What did Trai propose for spam reports from call-management apps?
- Trai proposed that call-management apps share user-generated spam reports with its Do-not-disturb registry. The proposal would apply to apps that manage, identify, or block incoming calls.
- Which Indian operators objected to Trai's spam app proposal?
- Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio, and Vodafone Idea objected to the proposal. The dispute centers on Trai's draft rules for apps such as Truecaller.
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